What does a steward do about warm-up areas, horse welfare and misconduct?

The rules give stewards these duties:

• supervise the warm-up areas
• ensure the welfare of the horse is paramount
• assist the ground jury by checking competition arena set-up, safety and surface
• communicate with the Organising Committee
• issue Yellow Warning Cards where warranted

Any official is authorised to intervene to prevent any abuse of horses by riders, grooms, owners or any other person, and to prevent any contravention of the common principles of behaviour, fairness and accepted standards of sportsmanship.

The stated purpose of stewarding is to protect the welfare of the horse and ensure fair play, to assist in making events run safely, and to support the Organising Committee in running the event under the EA rules and regulations.

Source: EA National Dressage Rules 1 January 2026, rules 6.4.1 and 6.5.